Midnight Haunts
by Vivadove
Summary: A simple one-shot of one of Bella's nightmares. Set sometime during New Moon.


I walked briskly up the sidewalk to the cafeteria. A crisp wind whipped my hair around my face, almost to the point of blinding me. Although I was walking in the center of the sidewalk, it felt as though if I strayed to either side a tiny bit, I would fall into a never-ending crater. None of my surroundings mattered; all I saw was the cafeteria ahead of me. It was almost as if I was wearing blinders, making me completely oblivious to everything around me.

Well, it was certainly no different from the past few months. Or was it years? Everything just seemed to blend these days… and nights. Like I was constantly living in a haze, in a dream. Only the dream was more of a nightmare.

There was no noise, despite the increasing wind. My footfalls were silent, and yet the silence was calming. It was better than the screams that echoed from my own mouth when I woke up in the middle of the night, thinking of _him_.

My chest ached, even though I did not think his name. I wished for his granite touch, the way he handled me like a newborn baby. His crooked smile flashed before my eyes, reminding me of the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland. I stopped in my tracks, the cafeteria just a few feet ahead of me. I was not alone.

"Bella! Bella, please!" A velvet voice called out to me frantically. _He _sounded so close, yet he felt so far away. At least, he felt far away, until an icy-cold hand clamped around my wrist. I turned in stark surprise, nearly falling over.

_Don't look at his face_, a small voice rang through my head, i_t will only hurt more_. I shut my eyes as fast as I could, shivering from the sudden chill that flashed through me. In my mind, I saw his perfect face, the features etched in stone. His eyes, though, I could not imagine.

_Just a little peek,_ the other half of my conscience reasoned. I decided that I liked this half better.

"Edw-" I began, parting my lids to see his perfection. But what I saw was not him. My body throbbed with pain at the empty shell I saw in front of me and I screamed, louder and shriller than I ever had before. His face was gaunt, the features sharper despite the hollowness of his cheeks. His mouth was open from his pleading, and I could see razor sharp teeth that glittered on their own accord. Despite his predatory appearance, he emanated such sadness and regret that it was nearly palpable. I braced myself to look into his eyes, but nothing could have prepared me for what I saw.

When I lifted my eyes to his, the scream intensified ten-fold. They were fire red, the red that trapped you in its depths and never let you go. I watched in horror as they morphed from the startling red to endless spheres of black. The purple crescents beneath his eyes grew darker. He hungered for my blood, and for once, I doubted his ability to restrain himself. His hand started to burn my wrist, as if his venom was transferring from the contact.

My voice was hoarse by now, and I gasped for breath. A face popped into my head, although I had no idea why that specific one did. "Jacob!" I cried. Tears began streaming down my face. _How could Jacob help me? Why would I want him to risk his own life for mine?_ As a last ditch effort at self-preservation, I pleaded to the figure in front of me. "Edward, don't do it…"

To my total surprise, he released his death-grip on my wrist. His face had paled, if that was at all possible. My brows furrowed in confusion until I felt a warm hand on my shoulder. Before I turned around, I knew who had probably saved my life.

Jacob smiled down at me with nothing but care and reassurance in his deep brown eyes. He towered above me, and for a moment, I felt the immense urge to ask him how the weather was in the stratosphere. But only for a moment. A hiss from the distorted figure in front of me threw me into a cold sweat. The last thing I wanted was for poor, innocent Jacob to get hurt.

"Jacob, run! He's a vam-" Jacob gently pushed me behind him protectively, growling menacingly. I was completely and totally confused. Sure, Jake was tall, but he was no match for a _vampire_. I peeked around his enormous frame to see Edward's reaction, and at once regretted it. Instead of the fury I expected, there was a mixture of hurt, distress, and even a trace fear written all over his face.

"Bella?" His voice was softer, regretful even. "Do you even remember me?" I stood there dumbfounded. Of course I remembered him! I thought about him every moment of my existence - so much that it was painful. However, I stopped myself from speaking. Did I actually remember this Edward? Sure, I remembered my beautiful, compassionate Edward. But this one was different. I was frightened of this Edward, a definite first for me. I wanted to run and hide… anything to get me away from him. My arms wrapped around Jacob's very muscular one, silently begging for protection. Edward's pitch-black eyes watched my every move, confusion and disappointment joining the mix of emotions.

"I don't know you," I whispered. Edward hissed again, and I shrunk against a trembling Jacob.

"I thought you were willing to _die_ for me, Bella! I thought you said I wasn't a _monster_!" He lunged for us, but before anyone could react, a pair of pearly white hands restrained him. He roared, scratching at the granite palms. Another pair of hands shot out from the darkness behind him, and then another. Soon, they covered his body, drawing him back into the abyss. "Bella!" He yelled in desperation. "Say you remember me! Say you love me!"

I shut my eyes, and collapsed into Jacob's welcoming arms. He held me close to his chest, which I just realized was bare, and tentatively stroked the back of my head. "Shh, it's going to be alright, Bells," he comforted me over the sounds of Edward's struggle. I felt oddly comfortable with Jacob, as though I was meant to be there. Which should have been awkward because he was younger than I was.

"Bella!" Edward screamed, I shuddered and choked back a sob. I felt freezing cold fingers graze the back of my neck, tugging at my hair and clothes, but Jacob held me close and protected me. The sensation soon went away, yet the echo of Edward's final cry seemed to hang in the air. I turned around cautiously, but only saw darkness.

"Bells, there's something I need to tell you," I turned back to Jacob, expecting him to say something along the lines of 'I love you'. "Please don't be scared, but I'm a-"

A scream cut him off, and I was surprised to find out it was mine. He was flying up rapidly in the air, far away from me. No, wait. His feet were firmly on the ground. _I_ was falling. He reached out to catch me, but I was too far away.

I was fairly positive lights flicked on outside when I sat up in the bed, my voice hoarse from screaming. I took several deep, shuddering breaths to try and calm myself. I heard Charlie moving around downstairs, finally remembering that I was in my room, and that had just been a nightmare. My father clambered up the stairs and knocked on my door.

"You okay, Bells?" He asked. I could tell he was concerned, but there was also an underlying element of exasperation; I wondered how many times he had done that in the past few months without me noticing, and I instantly felt terrible.

"I'm fine, Dad. Sorry I woke you, it was just a bad dream." I glanced over at the clock. _3:27. _Wonderful.

"Okay, Bella. Let me know if you, err, want to talk about it."

"Thanks, Dad. I'll keep that in mind." I stared at the rocking chair in the corner of my room. I watched as it swayed back and forth, as if someone had been sitting in it just a few moments before. My heart beat seemed to increase exponentially.

"Sounds good then," there was an exaggerated yawn from the other side of the door, and then, "I'm going back to sleep for another hour or so. Why don't you try to do that, too." Without waiting for a reply, he trudged back down the stairs.

"Great, Dad," I mumbled, slipping out of the bed. I moved silently over to the chair and sat in it, sniffing the air hopefully. It was not the scent I had been hoping for, though. It was much mustier, like the forest after a heavy rain. A sudden movement drew my attention to the window.

"I thought I closed you…" I trailed off, moving from the chair to the open window. A breeze was blowing my curtains as though it was a cliché movie scene. I looked out at the tree, and almost laughed aloud. A single shoe hung from a limb near the window.

I took a chance and looked at the ground. Pieces of fabric floated down to rest on the spongy grass. It was a curious sight to behold, especially after the dream I had just had. Shrugging off my worries for the moment, I stumbled back to my bed, being carefully to avoid the squeaky floorboard. I crawled back under the covers, and made a silent oath to myself that I would go down to La Push sometime this weekend and say hello to Billy and Jacob, or maybe invite them over for dinner. I was in the middle of planning the menu when I finally fell back to a dreamless sleep.


End file.
